This invention relates to distributing policy information in a communication network.
Some networks operate merely as a passive xe2x80x9cpipexe2x80x9d to transport data across the network. Other networks take advantage of advanced features of network devices, such as priority, custom, and weighted fair queuing. Adding such features complicates the configuration and management of the network.
To manage network components simply and intelligently, network designers have proposed policy based network management (PBNM). PBNM manages and controls a network as a whole, so that network operations conform to the business goals of the organization that operates the network and are applied on an individual, group, role, time of day, or other basis.